I will protect you
by xAnimeLuv
Summary: 5 year-old Lucy Heartfilia lost her parents, she was forced to live with her aunt who despised her. After 11 years of being treated like trash, Lucy made a decision that she would no longer put up with her aunt as she runs away on a stormy night. An 18 year-old homeless boy finds her and brings her with him without knowing that she will be hunted down...Strong T for blood and gore.
1. Prologue

**Yoooooo minna! Sooo this is my new story! Dw cause I'll still be working on my other one 'When will we be together' but I just felt like writing a new one :/ SO ENJOY THIS PROLOGUE!**

**Full Summary:**_** 5 year-old Lucy Heartfilia lost her parents, she was forced to live with her aunt who despised her. After 11 years of being treated like trash, Lucy made a decision that she would no longer put up with her aunt as she runs away on a stormy night. An 18 year-old homeless boy finds her and brings her with him without knowing that she will be hunted down...Strong T for blood and gore in later chapters.**_

**Disclaimer: I don't own Fairy Tail because I'm not as awesome as Hiro Mashima!**

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_**Prologue: I will protect you**_

Lucy Heartfilia, daughter of Layla and Jude Heartfilia, was playing with her dolls in the living room of their kingdoms castle as the sun was starting to set, her parents were watching her with a sad but loving smile. Layla was at the brink of tears as she clutched onto her husbands' arm, Jude placed a hand over hers for comfort but was also holding his tears in.

Suddenly there was a loud banging on the door and screams of their guards, Layla quickly ran to the sofa and took out a small back-pack and rushed to her daughter with Jude going to the back door to open it.

"Lucy, sweetie I want you to take this bag and run away as fast as you can okay?" Layla said as she got the bag onto her daughters back and lead her to the back door as the banging got louder.

"Why mama? papa? What's happening?" little Lucy asked watching as her mother and father hugged her while crying.

"Lucy, please know that we love you very much…. So please be safe and run away from here." Jude said as he let the tears flow free.

"Now go dear, run as fast as you can through the forest! Don't turn back no matter what…. Just try your hardest to get away…" Layla cried as she pushed her daughter forward and out the door into the forest. Layla smiled with waterfalls of tears coming out from her eyes as she watched her daughter enter the woods and look back with watery eyes before disappearing into the trees with her golden blonde hair flowing behind her.

Just then, the front door burst open to reveal two masked men holding bloody daggers with a mass pile of guards behind them with the only colour visible on the guards being scarlet red. Jude took hold of a display sword and stood in front of Layla's crying and trembling body.

"Your time is up, I am pretty sure that Lady Angel would be great at taking over your roles of ruling the kingdom!" The first assassin stated as he let out a sickening laugh.

"Now where is the little bundle of joy? Don't tell me that you have given us more of a challenge by making us chase the little brat! HM? You really shouldn't have seeing as though your guards already gave us some fun!" The second assassin said in a murderous tone while licking some blood off of his dagger.

"Don't you dare touch her!" Jude roared feeling the anger boil up in him.

"It is Lady Angel's order to capture her and kill you two so it must be done." The first assassin said nonchalantly.

"Why must you do this Angel…. At least don't punish my daughter for she has done nothing…" Layla muttered looking at her trembling hands remembering back to when they were just kids.

Ever since Layla and Angel were toddlers, they were very close since they were sisters. The day that their parents announced that Layla was to be the next ruler of their kingdom, Angel tried really hard to study and prove to her parents that she would be a better ruler. All of her hard work was in vain as Layla was crowned when she got married to Jude Heartfilia. Angel was furious so she left the kingdom vowing that she would be back to claim her spot as ruler of the land. Their parents passed away shortly after and Layla gave birth to a healthy baby girl. By the time of their daughters fifth birthday, Layla got a note saying:

_Dearest sister,_

_I have returned. You know that I cannot achieve my dream of becoming ruler when you are still here, so I have made a decision. You and Jude must die but not to worry, I will give you a few weeks to spend together with your precious little daughter. When the time is up, I will send my assassins to get you and capture that little brat so I can convince the rest of the kingdom that I should be the ruler until the little princess has grown up to be a suitable age to take over. But they wouldn't know that the princess will no longer be living by the time she reaches 18! I am not cruel as to kill a child so I shall raise her but don't expect me to treat her like the princess she is. Before her 18__th__ birthday I shall finish her off myself! I have trained myself to become a powerful being so there is no escape for any of you. I hope you have fun in your last few weeks of living! HAHAHAHA!_

_With all my love, Angel._

Layla was really shaken up by the latter and she knew that one day this would happen but she really wouldn't of have thought that Angel was that willing to kill her own family. Angel really was a nice girl when they were younger but now… she is like a totally different person so Layla was thinking that she might have gotten possessed by something.

"QUIT YOUR MUMBLING!" The second assassin spat as he lunged forwards to Layla with a dagger in each hand.

Jude blocked one of the assassins daggers with his sword but the assassin brang up his left arm and jammed the other dagger straight into Jude's stomach. The first assassin started to laugh as he pulled the dagger out and watched as Jude fell to the ground coughing up blood and clutching onto his stomach with endless amounts of blood spilling out of the wound.

Layla screamed out to her husband trying to get closer to him but ended up taking in her last breath when she felt two sharp objects enter her back. The first assassin was standing behind her with a sickening smirk plastered on his face. Layla fell to the ground panting for air, she muttered her last words as her eyes slid to a close. Jude tried desperately to crawl to his wife when he was kicked on his side and was sent flying to the wall opposite of his wife's body.

He knew he couldn't hold on to his consciousness much longer so he lifted his head up and prayed to the heavens that their daughter will live on to take her place as the kingdom's rightful ruler. Once the assassin's confirmed that the two were dead, they set out to the back door in search of the last Heartfilia that they needed to capture. Lucy Heartfilia.

**Layla's last words: **_activate...hi ga nobori...Lu...cy..._

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**SOOO…. HOW WAS IT? :D**

**Please tell me what you think of this and if I should continue or not ;D I just went with the flow and wrote down what ever came to mind so it might not be the best :/ just tell me what you all think about this! And don't forget to read and review my other NaLu fanfic 'When will we be together' if you haven't already :D (not sure if i'll continue this or not)**


	2. Stormy Nights

**Yoo minna! It's been quite a while since I updated any of my fanfics so I (finally) decided that it was time for some story writing :D I've been pretty busy lately so yer... I'm writing this instead of doing my homework that is due tomorrow so I'm already pretty much screwed anyways :l **

**In the Prologue of this story I had made Layla's last words '****activate...hi ga nobori...Lu...cy...****' It was just something that popped into my mind at that moment so the words don't really mean anything much but the true reason to why Layla said that will be revealed later cause I don't wanna spoil what I had planned ( - 3 - ) ON WITH THE FIRST CHAPTER!**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Fairy Tail because I am not as awesome as Hiro Mashima!**

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_**Chapter 1: Stormy Nights**_

Tonight is the night. She was finally going to escape this hell prison of a castle. She had planned this epic escape for a while now and it is finally going to be put into action. Some of the guards and maids, that had been forced to continue working here after the 'tragic murder' of the former King and Queen, are helping the young mistress find freedom from the clutches of _her_.

"I'm expecting you to be up and ready tomorrow morning at precisely 6am to fix my breakfast as usual. If it does not suit my taste then... you should know what happens next if that were to happen" snickered Angel as she locked the door to the room that Lucy was currently in.

As Lucy lay motionless under the safety of her blankets, she listened intently to the fading footsteps of the witch and her body guards. There was only the ticking of her clock and the soft drips of rain on her window sill that could be heard now, she threw her covers off of her body and quickly but quietly got out of bed. She grabbed a backpack out from under her pillow that contained a small first aid kit, some money and some clothes. She then quietly walked over to her closet and opened it slightly, just so she could fit her fist into it, and proceeded to pull out a dark green beanie. She pushed the closet closed again and looked in the mirror at herself.

As she put her beanie on, she tucked all of her golden locks into it so that it couldn't be seen. Her attire consists of fingerless leather gloves, navy track pants, a pair of high rain boots that the ends of the track pants were tucked into and a black long sleeved hoodie that her (escape helping) maids had prepared for her. She looked around her dark room that she had been sleeping in for the past 11 years. It was really the only place that she had some privacy in. Her eyes landed on the window, the rain had gotten heavier and you could barely see the crescent moon behind the dark thick clouds. At least the rain would help her escape and camouflage easier. There was a flash of lightning and Lucy flinched, bringing her hands up to cover her ears just in time for the delayed thunder crash to echo around the room.

Lucy never liked thunder because it scared the living daylights out of her ever since she was young and she had never gotten over it. But this wasn't going to stop her from running away from the witch. She glanced at her clock that hung on the wall to her right and nodded to herself. _'They should be just about ready by now'_ she thought to herself as she walked towards the window.

She popped the lock open and slid the glass up, the rain splashed onto her face and clothes. When she looked down from her fourth floor window, she saw that the 'escape plan' team was there and had already blown up the inflatable mattress for her to land on. She lifted herself onto the ledge of the window and took deep breaths to calm her racing heart. She closed the window and leaned against the wall for balance support on the tiny ledge. She also doesn't like heights.

Looking down again, she saw the team waving their arms to her, signalling that the coast is clear and that she could jump. So she did, without hesitation because she knew that she would have chickened out if she had stayed on that ledge any longer. It was a really strange feeling to be jumping from an amazing height in a storm. The wind was gushing in her face and the water droplets felt like they come out of the ground and falls to the clouds, a reverse effect. It felt like forever until she finally landed on the mattress and one of the team members called Erza helped her to her feet.

"Thanks Erza." Lucy gave her friend a hug.

Erza smiled sadly and hugged back saying, "Lucy... please be safe. We will cover for you if anything happens."

"Lucy..."

"Lucy-san!"

"Lucy-dono..."

They each bid their mistress a farewell and a hug as they left to continue their work for the 'witch'. Erza waited until the farewells had been said until she was left with the princess in the rain.

"Lucy, here is four days' worth of food and water, a map and some extra money." Erza handed the goods to Lucy as she put them in her backpack. "Now go before they find out that you are missing!"

"Really... Thank you Erza! I owe you so much!" Lucy gave Erza one last hug before running off into the darkness of the forest that she had been running through 11 years ago.

Although the rain was covering it, Erza let some tears free as she walked back to her post that she was assigned to guard that night. _'I wish you the best of luck Lucy'_ Erza thought as she looked worriedly out the window at the storm.

Lucy's boots were dirty with mud, the puddles splashed as her boot connected with them. The rain was only getting harder and harder by the minute and the thunder was getting more frequent.

It had probably been about 3 hours since Lucy had started running through the forest but she was absolutely exhausted and was walking with her shoulders slouched. She could hardly breathe so the humid air and pouring rain wasn't doing much help. She was way beyond drenched and was hoping that the plastic she had wrapped around her backpack was doing a good job of keeping the bag and its contents dry. She knew that she wound get a fever after this, if she ever did get out of this.

A few more hours later, Lucy was on the verge of collapsing. She was cold but hot at the same time and she knew that she had a bad fever. Too tired to pay any heed to the thunder anymore, the rain wasn't as heavy anymore but it was still pouring. She didn't see the root in front of her and her legs finally gave in as she toppled over panting. She was lying on her side breathless as her thoughts ran through her whole life. Just as she closes her eyes slowly, she sees a pair of boots walking slowly, thank god or she would have been drenched with mud as well, towards her. She can't keep her eyes open anymore and she slowly fades into darkness. The last thing she sees and hears is pink and a soft 'Hey! Hang in the-'.

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**... I present to you... CHAPTER 1! :D Please review and tell me what you think of it hehe I really had a hard time thinking about what I should put in this fanfic so I hope you enjoyed it! Bet you are all looking forward to the next chapter ;D Wanted to make this longer but I couldn't think of anything else to write and sorry of there is any bad grammar :l until next time! JA NE~!**


	3. Taking care of you

**Yoo minna~~ xAnimeLuv here! I was extremely happy when I checked my fanfic and saw heeps of Favs, Follows and Reviews~ I can die in ( ;D One) Piece now :D Natsu might be a bit OOC :l HUGE THANKS TO ALL OF YOU! I'VE GOTTEN MY INSPIRATION BACK WOOOO! HAHAHAH NOW ON WITH THE SECOND CHAPTERR! LETS GO NATSUUU~**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Fairy Tail because I am not as awesome as Hiro Mashima!**

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_**Chapter 2: Taking care of you**_

_In a dark room somewhere..._

"_For what reason did you let her go...milady...?" one of the cloaked men that were looking out of the curtained windows at the fading figure asked in a deep voice, "you have plans for her... don't you...?"_

_The said woman sitting in a throne said nothing, instead, a mischievous grin made its way to her pale lips and she let out a blood curling laugh._

**Lucy P.O.V**

_**.,~Darkness (Yami)~,.**_

_It was pitch black and I was floating in the middle of nowhere. Am I dead?... How did I die?... I couldn't remember anything. My mind was hazy and it was giving me a headache. Where am I?... Why am I here?... __**Who **__am I?... Did I get amnesia? ... There were so many questions that were running through my mind right now that it was agonising to count... and why am I nak-... WAHH! I'M NAKED! Lucky no one is around here or it would of been embarrassing..._

_The only thing that I remember is that I was running away from something... and there was a big storm... and...pink..? Arghh I can't think anymore!_

_I clutched my head and squeezed my eyes closed while bringing my legs up to my chest. I don't know why but I started to cry, I couldn't help it. After a few minutes, I saw something bright from behind my eyelids so I slowly opened my eyes. It took me a while for my eyes to adjust to the light as I wiped my tears away and squinted to see better. The light was coming from a distance in front of me. Around it, I saw that the darkness looked like strands of hair that wanted to swallow the light. I noticed after a while that the light was getting smaller and the darkness was caving in on it._

_Wondering exactly what the light was, I subconsciously started to float towards it. Seeing that the light was starting to fade away, I panicked and tried to do a frog swim to move faster because I really didn't know a better way to accelerate faster in mid-air. Although I might look extremely weird right now swimming like a frog while completely in the nude, I was successfully getting closer to the light._

_As I got closer, the light looked more like a glowing ball of whiteness around the size of an oven. _

_The light started to shrink again so I reached out my arms and tried to froggie swim faster. The glowing sphere was right in front of me and was now the size of a tennis ball. I hesitated to even touch it but when I saw the darkness closing in on it again, I felt a sense of possessiveness so I grabbed it and hugged it to my chest using my body to protect it. Suddenly, the sphere started to shine brighter and the darkness was washed away instantly._

_It was turning extremely bright and I had to let the sphere go as I used my arms to cover my eyes as I squinted. I was temporarily blinded so I didn't see when the sphere turned into a semi-transparent figure that was the splitting image of myself but was clothed in a white flowing dress. _

_I felt something lightly touch my arms that I had covered my eyes with and a soft kind voice that said, "Lucy... open your eyes..."_

_Ahhh... Is that my name? Lucy?_

_Just as I was about to open my eyes, I felt everything around me change in a split second._

_**-End of the 'Dream'-**_

**Still in Lucy P.O.V**

The first thing that I noticed was that I was in a laying position now and was glad that there was gravity again but that moment of happiness was short lived as pain struck through my body, mostly my aching head. The next thing I noticed was that the air around me was really warm. Too warm in fact that I was sweating bullets and what was even worse was that I couldn't move because of all the pain. I tried as hard as I could to move but I only managed to wriggle a bit which made the soreness in my body worsen.

I was way beyond relieved when something, a small towel I presume, cold and wet was dabbed around my sweaty face and my body relaxed at the coolness. I didn't notice that my eyes were clenched shut as well so I relaxed them and started to open them lazily as the towel moved on to wipe my sweaty right hand.

Do you know that feeling when soap gets into your eyes while you're washing your hair with shampoo and stings like crazy? Well... my eyes felt like that right now but I tried to ignore the pain as I very slowly blinked the blurriness out of them.

The first thing I saw was a gloomy rocky roof, it must be dark outside. There was also a soft 'shhhhhh' sound coming from outside so I assumed it was raining. I could feel every cut and bruise on my body pulsing with pain but with all of the heat that was around me, I felt unusually cold now.

I was kind of missing the heat, I've always liked summer better than winter but spring wasn't too bad either, the only bad thing about it was that the weather can change too drastically. One day it would be cold and rainy and when the next day came, it would be really hot and stuffy.

My thoughts were cut short as my right hand was placed down and my left hand was lifted up. I tilted my head and looked down towards my left hand and saw the towel that was wiping away at the cold sweat. There was a muscular arm that was attached to the towel... muscular... arm... I focused my eyes more and saw the shape of a person sitting beside me. I panicked a little and started to squirm, I guess the person noticed my uneasiness.

"You shouldn't move, it will only make yourself feel worse. Don't worry I'm only trying to help."

I noted that the person was a guy and his voice somehow lifted my worries. I felt extremely tired and started to drift to sleep, his voice felt relaxing to listen to. I took one more glance at the boy beside me. There it was again. The colour pink. I guess he was the one that saved me from whatever it was that I was running away from. He must be a nice guy since he's helping a complete stranger... or am I a stranger to him...? After that thought, I fell into a peaceful sleep.

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_**~ Two days later ~**_

**Normal P.O.V**

After 4 days of constant raining, the storm had finally stopped. The morning after the final night of the storm, the clouds had moved on and the sun that had just risen was shining, although not too brightly. Everything was still damp from the rain and there were big muddy puddles, fallen trees and burnt foliage throughout the whole kingdom. Animals came out from their hiding places in search of food and fresh water.

It had been three days since Lucy had opened her eyes and she was rapidly recovering from her fever with the help from the mysterious boy. He had changed her muddy wet clothes with the spare clothes that she had in her backpack (making sure not to look as he did so.) and heating up the cavern **(A/N: He still has his dragon slayer magic in this story and also his trademark clothes from before the time skip. Not all the characters will have their magic. Lucy does not have her celestial magic~) **so that she sweats away most of her fever. He also found her first aid kit and used it to wrap up her wounds. When he saw her shivering in her sleep, he took off his vest and used it as a blanket for her although it wasn't perfect, it was all he could do besides heating up the place.

The salmon haired boy had just woken up and was now wiping the drool from his face and stretching his aching joints from sleeping in an awkward position. The boy lazily walked towards the entrance of his cavern and pushed some dangling vines to the side so he could see outside. The thick vines acted as a cover-up to hide the cavern from anyone or anything that was unwelcome.

A small smile formed on his lips when he saw the sun, showing some of his pointed canines. The smell of a new day after a storm is always refreshing. The teen yawned and rubbed the sleep out of his eyes. He turned around and took in the sight of a basket of fish that he had caught the night before and the blond girl that was sleeping soundly on his make-shift leaf bed. He was quite proud of himself for saving her from the storm and also treating her wounds and fever.

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_~Flashback~_

"Hey! Hang in there!" The pink haired teen yelled as he rushed towards the fallen figure in the heavy rain.

He kneeled down beside the person and after getting no reaction from nudging them, he flipped the person over on their back so he could see their face. As he did so, the person's beanie slipped off and revealed long blond hair. _'It's a girl'_ the boy thought as he picked her and the beanie up to rush underneath a big tree that shelters from the heavy rain, some of the rain drips through the leaves but it will do for now.

He propped her against the trunk of the tree as he shook his head to get his damp hair out of his eyes. He used his arm to wipe the mud off of the girls face and placed his other hand on her forehead. He pulled his hand back and winced, she was heating up and she must have an extraordinary fever to get him feeling high temperatures at all because of the natural body heat that he produces.

With his heightened senses, he heard a twig snap from a distance away so he snapped his head in the direction it came from and tried to see any movement in the rain but saw nothing. After a while, he turned his attention back to the blond and studied her features. He really hadn't seen anyone like this before, she was still breath taking even if she had cuts and bruises all over her. There was something... something that drew him in and he did not want to abandon her here for any reason. He couldn't help but feel attached to her but he didn't know why, all he knew was that he had to save her.

He heard another movement from the rain in the same direction as before. Quickly, he picked the girl up bridal style and dashed the opposite way of where the noise came from and headed towards his temporary hide-out that he had found a few days ago.

Another twig snapped and something ran out from the rain and under the tree that the two had just been. The 'thing' spiralled up the tree and in a little whole in the bark, it was a drenched squirrel. The pink haired teen was just too paranoid from the rain.

_~End of Flash back~_

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**Normal P.O.V**

The rosy haired teen was now sitting topless in front of a small fire cooking the fish. He swallowed the cooked fish whole making sure not to get anything on his precious scarf and jabbed another fish onto his stick.

At the smell of food, Lucy started to wake up after her 2-day-long sleep. Her nose twitched and she shot up in a sitting position, her hands still unconsciously gripping the vest to her chest like a teddy bear.

The boy turned his head around and smiled, "Oh! You're finally awake, want some fish?" He held up another cooked fish.

Lucy turned her head towards the voice and saw the pink haired boy, she backed away a little and asked, "W-who are you?"

The boys smile widened further, "I'm Natsu!"

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**DUNDUNDUNDUN! Natsu is finally introduced :D please tell me what you think by reviewing~ It makes my heart go doki-doki ;) I'm trying to make my chapters a bit longer now so you all will be happy! Please Review Minna~~ Until next time, Ja Ne~!**


	4. Pasts and Mysterious Letters

**Yoooooo Minna! I'm back~ ;) I really love you all... your reviews make me so happy (; NOW ON WITH CHAPTER 3!**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Fairy Tail because I am not as awesome as Hiro Mashima!**

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_**~Previously~**_

_Lucy turned her head towards the voice and saw the pink haired boy, she backed away a little and asked, "W-who are you?"_

_The boys smile widened further, "I'm Natsu!"_

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_**Chapter 3: Pasts and Mysterious Letters**_

**Normal P.O.V**

"GHHHHRRRRRRRPPPPPP~"

The blond flushed with embarrassment as 'Natsu' howled with laughter that echoed around the small cavern. By instinct, her arms wrapped around her stomach to try to supress the growling sounds that she was sure to come.

"S-Shut up!" Lucy yelled 'He doesn't seem like a bad person...' she thought as she watched Natsu roll around on the ground while hysterically kicking his legs up in the air.

_~ 2 minutes later ~_

When Natsu had finally calmed down from his outburst and sat up with a lively smile still plastered on his face, he turned towards the girl that had now shuffled herself next to the fire by his side to his right with her legs crossed. She was staring straight at him and he found it a little odd, there was something about the way she stared at him that made him feel a bit nervous.

"W-what is it?" Natsu stuttered.

*geeeee* (staring sounds)

When he received no answer, he gulped and slowly asked, "Is there something on my face..?"

"...Actually... there is..." she pointed to her left cheek, "there's a bit of dirt right here from when you were rolling on the ground."

Natsu's eyes got wider and he quickly turned his face away from her to rid his cheek of the dirt smudge, Lucy was the one to laugh this time although she didn't start rolling on the ground like he had.

Lucy's nose picked up the smell of cooked fish and she instantly perked up, her eyes travelled towards the small fire and saw a stick that was jabbed into the dirt for it to remain up-right and on the other end of it was a fish that looked and smelt just about ready to be eaten. She smiled with shining eyes as her mouth watered, she extended her arm to grab the precious fish but something else bet her to it. Her smile turned into a pout as her eyes followed the cooked fish that Natsu was now waving around, keeping it out of her reach. The first thing she noticed about him was that his left cheek had turned all red from him rubbing the dirt off of it too roughly and she had to stifle her giggles, if it wasn't for her being so hungry she knew that she would be literally laughing her ass off at how silly he looked.

"I'll let you have the fish only if you tell me your name" Natsu waved the skewered fish in front of her and pulled it back when she tried to snatch at it (rather like a cat).

"umm.. I.. don't really know myself..." She answered honestly, bringing her knees up to her chin, she tried to remember back to when she was little but her memory was all fuzzy, she then remembered about the weird dream that she had and the familiar voice in it calling her 'Lucy'. She didn't know whether or not it was a good choice to tell Natsu but she decided that she would tell him because she felt as though she could trust him. Plus, he was the one that had saved her life. Natsu was somewhat shocked, his expression dropped and he thought to himself 'I guess the fever affected her memory...'

When she saw his face drop, she quickly added, "B-but... I do remember that I had a dream... and someone... someone in there called me 'Lucy' so... I think my name is Lucy."

"..Lucy..." Natsu whispered softly and a sincere smile made its way to his face. He quite liked the sound of her name for some odd reason that he himself could not figure out.

A peculiar feeling was sent down Lucy's spine as soon has he had whispered her name, when she saw his warm expression, her eyes automatically closed and her body tensed as she shivered. Just as she was about to open her eyes again, something that smelt delicious was shoved into her mouth. It was the cooked fish, she held onto the stick and stared to nibble on it with delight. She didn't notice that Natsu was now sitting there crossed legged and staring at the fire with bulging eyes with his right elbow on his knee and his sweaty face resting on his hand that was trying to cover up his burning cheeks while his left hand held another skewered fish to the fire carelessly.

**(Let's go to Natsu's mind for a bit shall we?)**

_D-Damn... what was that... okay... clam down Natsu, calm down and think about it... O.k... So... I looked up and her eyes were closed. Big deal. But why did I start to get closer to her! It all happened so fast, why does my chest feel like it's going to burst! Was I about t-to... k-k-kiss her?! NO! I only just found out what her name was! How can this be?! I've never felt like this before...! Lucky I had the fish in my hand at the time or she would have seen me getting closer... phew... Let's just say that this never happened... yeah... It never happened... –deep breaths-_

**(Get in there Natsu! ;D Back to Normal P.O.V after they finished eating the fish)**

"Ahh~ that was the BEST breakfast I've ever had!" Lucy exclaimed as she lay on the ground and pumped her fists up in the air.

Natsu sweat dropped, "All you ate was some cooked fish... There are heaps more delicious food out there in the world!"

"Really? Like what?"

"Well... the best thing I've eaten so far is stewed Sea King meat with various herbs and spices but the thing that brings out the true flavour of the Sea King meat is this special glowing mushroom that is very rare and only grows at the very centre of Men Valley."

"Stewed Sea King Meat!? It sounds so enchanting! I want to eat it!" Lucy was carried into thoughts of herself sitting at the very end of a table that stretched out to the horizon, further then the eye could see and on the table were mass amounts of what she imagined the godly stew to look like. Her eyes gleamed and her mouth hung a gape, although she had just eaten and was full, she couldn't control herself and wanted nothing more than to devour the food in front of her.

She came back to reality when Natsu snapped his fingers in front of her face laughing, "Hey! Your face looks retarded!" his laughter grew louder and he ran to the spot furthest away from Lucy in the cavern.

"WHAT!" a vein popped from her forehead and she ran after him swinging her arms around, "You're going to pay for what you said about me you bastard!" She exclaimed.

This was the first time in a while that he had laughed this much in one day, he was really glad that he had met and saved Lucy. "I was joking! I was joking! Pfft!" He continued laughing as he was chased around by the fuming girl.

After some time, both Natsu and Lucy fell to the ground laughing at how silly they must have looked running around in the small cavern. Of course, they didn't notice that there was someone watching them on a distant hill.

This person is a male that looked just above the age of 30, his hair was silver, short and unkempt, his beard looked as if he had shaven it recently but the hairs had already started to grow back. He looked to be at least 20cm taller than Natsu, although his body wasn't as built as Natsu's, there were still some signs of muscle training. His skin was pale and his hair only made him look more like a ghost, the thing that stood out most of all on him was his eyes. They were a deep yellow in colour and they always looked tired and droopy, it looked as if they could see right through your soul though he usually kept his eyes closed. He wears baggy pants with an 'army-like' design on it and whenever someone questions him about the design, he claims that he is being 'one' with nature, he never wears a top so his pale chest is always exposed. He carries a blanket that matches his pants around everywhere, there is never a time where you don't see it with him. It is usually tied around his waist and the ends dangle down to knee level over his right hip. He is very a lazy type of person, has a habit of always yawning and whenever he sees a chance, he will sleep and that's why he always brings his blanket around with him. Although he may seem useless and lazy, his eyes are like no other. They can see very clearly at long distances, way further than the normal eye can see, it is like his eyes are binoculars themselves. His eyes are the main reason that his nickname is 'The White Hawk'.

"So..? Did you find her?" A woman's voice asked from the small blue butterfly that had landed on the mysterious man's shoulder.

"-yawn- ...Yeah..." he answered in a deep voice, "She's with some guy. –yawn-"

"Some guy?! If you get the chance, exterminate him!" the woman said in a venomous tone.

"yeah, yeah –yawn- exterminate everyone that she befriends –yawn-" He answered nonchalantly and waved his hand tiredly to shoo the butterfly away.

"I know how you are 'White Hawk'. Do not slack off or YOU will be the one exterminated, I cannot allow her to fall in love and get married or all of the work I've done until now would be ruined!"

"-yawn- whatever... Angel..." and with that, the butterfly flew off into the distance. As soon as it was out of sight, which took a while since 'White Hawk' could see extremely far, he untied his blanket from his waist and sighed as he lay down all wrapped up and cosy. Better sleep now while he can. Not very long later, soft snoring sounds could be heard from atop that hill.

For the rest of the morning, Natsu and Lucy sat around in the small cavern talking to each other with Natsu telling Lucy about his past. Lucy learnt that Natsu is homeless now and that he has been travelling around Fiore for around 3 years. Before this though, Natsu had a father although he wasn't Natsu's biological father, he was the closest thing that Natsu had to family. Natsu never knew who his real family was, he was taken in by a man called Igneel that taught Natsu how to use ancient fire magic. However, when Natsu was 10 years old, Igneel suddenly disappeared and has never been seen since. Natsu was then taken in by a kind lady called Mirajane, he lived with Mirajane and her two younger siblings, Elfman and Lisanna. After 5 years however, the small village they lived in got attacked and there were few survivors. Lisanna was lost in the destruction. Natsu felt bad for being an extra wheel for their survival so he gave them his share of money and food that he had taken before the village had burnt down and farewelled Mirajane and Elfman after he confirmed that they were going to be safe in a different village.

Lucy knew by the way he talked that he had cared for those siblings a lot, somehow though, she felt as though she understands the pain of 'losing someone'. Had she lost someone important to her before all of this? She really wants to remember her past.

"Well, all of this talking made me thirsty~ let's go down to the river and get a drink!" Natsu suggested and Lucy nodded her head in agreement not knowing what else to do. She didn't want to make a wrong comment about his past and make him feel uncomfortable while talking to her next time. She really felt happy that Natsu was willing to tell her about his dark past and trust her while he had only just met her. She promised herself that when she remembers about her own past, she will tell him everything.

They walked down to the river in a comfortable silence with Natsu leading the way. Just as they were about to reach two big bushes that blocked their path, Natsu stopped and his head swung towards the head of the mountain with cautious eyes causing Lucy to bump into him.

"Why'd you suddenly sto-... what's wrong?" She asked when she saw his eyes. He snapped out of his trance and replied, "I thought I heard some snoring coming from that hill over there."

"Snoring? It might be some animal."

Natsu thought for a bit and agreed although he was still suspicious, "yeah... I guess so... anyways, don't be too shocked when you see it." Natsu grinned as he spread the bushed apart and moved to the side so she could step in first.

Lucy took two steps forwards between the bushes and she saw the most amazing sight, her eyes twinkled as she took in the scenery. Behind the bushes was a river filled with clear, sparkling water and healthy fish swimming around in it. The whole river was glistening brightly because of the reflections of little droplets of rain that remained on the trees and plants around it. The water was flowing softly in the direction that the wind was blowing causing small ripples in the already sparkling water. The grass and foliage around the river were all very vivid and vibrant in colour that it was blinding to look at, Lucy came back to reality as Natsu place a hand on her back and lightly pushed her forwards making her stumble a little. She looked back at him and he smiled just as brightly as the plants and river.

"Like it? I found it yesterday when I was looking for food, it's where I got the fish. Although it didn't look as good as it is now, in fact I quite disliked it then because it was raining and all gloomy."

"Of course I like it! It's beautiful!" Lucy exclaimed and happily ran towards the edge of the water to kneel down and cup her hands in the cool water.

"Not as beautiful as you..." Natsu whispered softly and when he realised what he had just said, he slapped his hand over his mouth, 'WHA-! What did I just say?!' He thought.

Lucy brang her hands up to her lips and downed the water, some droplets slid down the side of her mouth and she wiped them away then sighed in content. "Natsu! You got to come here and try some of this! It's delicious!" Lucy turned around and waved her hand, indicating him to come and drink. She noticed that he was yet again, spaced out and raised an eyebrow at him.

Natsu noticed her looking at him and he quickly made his way to the edge of the water next to her, "Is it really that good?" He quickly asked and squatted down to lower his hands in the water.

Lucy nodded her head and smiled when she saw Natsu's refreshed face after drinking the water. She noticed something white out of the bottom of her eye and looked down towards the strange object. It looked like some sort of folded paper so she picked it up and shook it to fling the water from the grass off of it before it soaked in. On one side of the folded paper, there was the word _'Lucy'_. She thought that it might be something that she could use to help her remember her past so she started to unfold it. As she did so, Natsu looked over her shoulder curious of what she was doing.

**The note read:**

_Dear Lucy,_

_There was not enough time to tell you this in person so I have written a letter for you instead so you can read it after you have escaped the castle. Lady Layla had told me to inform you of some things before the assassins came that night, I was told to tell you only when you are ready and I believe that you are indeed ready to know of this now. "Lucy, if something bad were to happen to you or the kingdom, there is a place that can grant the power for those who seek to protect someone or something that is important to them. Although there is only a certain person each thousand years that is granted this power, I believe that you, Lucy, could be 'the one'. It is said that this power comes in the form of a living creature that looks like a small peculiar fairy with a tail and thus earns its name of the 'Fairy Tail Legend'. Its resting place is to the very East of Fiore so you would have to travel a fair distance away from the castle to get to it but I believe that you can do it Lucy. It may be the only way... Lucy, please take care and whatever happens in the future, be strong and let nothing bring you down because you are going to be the ruler of the kingdom one day. My precious daughter, please stay well and safe. Love from your mother, Layla Heartfilia." _

_That was the message from Lady Layla, the 'Fairy Tail Legend' is the only way to save the kingdom right now from Angel's wrath. I am truly sorry for not being able to assist you on your quest but I have to stay behind to make sure that Angel doesn't go out of control. I pray for your safety Lucy, I know you can find and wield that power. I have some friends throughout the kingdom that will be willing to help you. I have a small present for you from Lady Layla that I believe will help you on your journey, please use it with care. Come home safe._

_With love from Erza Scarlet._

Shocked, Natsu slowly said, "H-Heartfilia..? Lucy... you're the princess...?"

"I-I..." was all she managed to say as her eyes dimmed and she was brought into her own memory. She saw a few images of herself when she was a baby crawling around the garden and getting all muddy while her parents watched her with smug faces, they both had crowns on their heads and she had a little tiara on hers. Another image was when she was a little older, around the age of 5, she was playing with some dolls in the living room with her parents standing behind her smiling sadly then suddenly there were loud noises coming from outside and her mother ran to her to guide her to the back door. The last image she saw was herself crying while running through the forest. Then two men appeared out of nowhere and grabbed her as she thrashed around screaming and trying to break free.

"Lucy... Lucy!... LUCY!" She shook her head and looked at Natsu with teary eyes. Natsu reacted quickly to her tears and embraced her as she sobbed into his chest with him whispering comforting words into her ear.

"Lucy... I promise... I will protect you no matter what!"

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**POW! So... what do you think of this chapter? Please review and tell me what you think of it! I was having trouble thinking of the description of the 'White Hawk' and was going crazy because my brain was exploding. OH YEAH! Someone (Minallys) asked if I was going to update monthly... Well It all depends on whenever I feel like writing more or when I get good ideas. I'm not really sure myself on the times that I will be updating by but that mainly all depends on my reviewers and the support I get from you all that review and favourite! There was quite a lot of NaLu fluff yes? ;) I got goose bumps just writing it HAHAHA! BTW, please follow me on twitter because I might post some important things on there and what not like some sketches of stuff! Check my bio for my twitter link~ Look forward to the next update! Please review minna and Ja Ne~!**


	5. The secret of the letter

**Hi minna~ I'm sorry for not updating for so long! Please enjoy this chapter and review so I can get more inspiration!**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Fairy Tail because I am not as awesome as Hiro Mashima but I do own a Monkey D. Luffy plush! (It's so cute!)**

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_**~Previously~**_

"_Lucy... Lucy!... LUCY!" She shook her head and looked at Natsu with teary eyes. Natsu reacted quickly to her tears and embraced her as she sobbed into his chest with him whispering comforting words into her ear._

"_Lucy... I promise... I will protect you no matter what!"_

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_**Chapter 4: The secret of the letter**_

**Normal P.O.V**

The blonde calmed down after some time and wiped her red, tear-stained face while trembles still racked through her body sending shivers down her spine. Natsu rubbed her back gently and pulled back from their embrace to study her face, she looked back up at him with longing eyes that seemed to see through his own. A small smile formed on her lips which caused him to smile as well, she was happy that she finally had someone that she could rely on after all these years. It was everything that she had ever wanted and its right in front of her eyes. She won't let it go this time like she did with her parents back then.

Natsu and Lucy sat beside the lake that day, Lucy told Natsu everything that she had remembered and he listened intently to her story. He comforted her when her feelings seemed to waver at the memories that were brought back to her through talking about her dark past.

While Natsu listened to her, he couldn't help but feel suspicious about the presence that he had felt before. He could still faintly hear the snoring and he knew that it was definitely not an animal. The only thing that could snore like that was a human.

_**A bit later...**_

As Lucy finished telling Natsu about her escape from the castle and the long trek through the forest in the storm before blacking-out, the snoring that Natsu was cautious of suddenly stopped.

"Lacy, you kn-"

"L-U-C-Y" Lucy corrected a tad irritated.

"Lucy, sorry. You know that snoring that I said I heard before?"

"Yeah...?"

"Well, it stopped..." Natsu knew it was rude to mention this after Lucy had just finished talking about her past but it was necessary because he could sense a kind of danger.

Lucy seemed a bit scared as she looked around the lake and back at the bushes that they had come from. Natsu stood up, grabbed Lucy's hand and started to lead her away from the lake and back towards their little cave in a fast-walking pace. When they arrived at the cave, Natsu packed the remaining fish in his back pack and wore it. He then went over to where Lucy's bag was and picked it up, hoisting it over his shoulder. Lucy complained that his bag would stink of fish later on but Natsu didn't seem to hear as his face remained in the same worried and confused expression which caused Lucy to be concerned about him.

When Natsu was kicking at the remaining fire on the burnt wood that was used for cooking the fish, Lucy walked up to him and placed a hand on his shoulder. Natsu, being too paranoid, swung his head around in shock and accidently hit his forehead into Lucy's which caused her to get knocked back and fall on her butt.

"Owww~" Lucy whined as she gently rubbed her forehead which was staring to turn red, still sitting on the ground. Natsu blinked blankly as he watched her, when he figured out what had happened, he started to laugh at her pouting face and red forehead.

"Hey! It isn't funny!"

"Hahaha Sorry, sorry" Natsu held out his hand and Lucy gladly took it although still annoyed. He pulled her back upright and something fell from her pocket, it was the letter that they had discovered earlier from Erza.

"Jesus! You really need to get something with better pockets" Natsu said as he picked up the piece of paper. He noticed some kind of wavy design on the back of the paper so he turned it around and saw a symbol that he had seen while he was traveling around Fiore.

His hand came up to touch the symbol but it was like any other normal piece of paper as his hand made contact with the surface. He turned around and grabbed Lucy's hand and placed her finger tips on the same spot where he had put his hand. After 3 seconds, the spot where Lucy's fingers touched the paper glowed a golden yellow colour and her hand started to slowly sink in the page. She shrieked in fear and tried to pull away but Natsu kept her hand in place as she struggled to break free.

Her hand was completely devoured and Lucy stared at it in awe. She flinched when her hand made contact with something cold. She summed up her courage and grabbed whatever it was, it felt like it was some kind of handle and rope so she started to pull it out. When the thing was completely out of the page, the symbol faded away like none of that had just happened and it looked like any other hand-written note.

Lucy looked at what she had just pulled out of the note, it was a whip. She noticed some inscribed letters on the handle and took a closer look at it, it read, '_Heartfilia'._

"My... mothers whip?"

"Wow...Was your mom some kind of epic sadist? HAHAHAHA"

"SHUT UP!" Lucy, out of the spur of the moment, lashed the whip out at Natsu's head which caused him to whine in pain and hold his aching head which was starting to swell up causing a red lump to appear through his hair. Lucy stared in shock at what she had just done, she felt bad for hitting him so hard.

"Ow ow ow~ I guess you're a sadist too then." A vein popped out of Lucy's fore-head and the pity that she had felt before completely vanished as she swung the whip again hitting him in the same spot. Natsu now had a swollen lump upon another swollen lump on his head and is kneeling down in front of Lucy begging for her forgiveness while she loomed over him with a dark aura surrounding her.

"I think I'm pretty good at using this as a weapon for self-defence." She praised herself as she studied the whip.

"Since when do you have to defend yourself from me?" Natsu whined still rubbing his head.

"You were being rude!" Lucy shot him a glare.

"I'm sorry!" Natsu whimpered and backed away from her.

Lucy sighed as she watched the pink haired teen shrink down in fear and shook her head. What was she going to do with such a weird idiot like him. Now that she thought about it, how did he know that there was something in that strange symbol on the letter anyway?

"Natsu, how did you know that the letter could do that?"

Natsu cleared his throat in a deep and manly way while dusting himself off and standing upright and proud. '_He's hopeless...' _Lucy thought as she watched him act tough.

"Well, while I was traveling around Fiore, I over-heard these people talking about some kind of magic letter. It sounded interesting so I was curious. When I asked them, they said that it was a letter with a wavy oval symbol on it with something that looks like a house structure in the middle and small wings on top that branched out like trees. It's a special kind of letter because the sender can put one object in it so that no one can see or take it if it's important. The good thing about it is that only the person for whom it's for can retrieve it from the symbol. The symbol can only be used once so when that happens, it disappears and turns back into a normal letter. I've never actually seen it before and when I saw the symbol on your letter, it reminded me of what those people had described." Natsu explained and Lucy nodded still taking in all the information.

**(A/N: If you want to see what the symbol looks like then please visit my twitter because I will be posting a sketch of it there. Please look in my bio, fourth line down, for the link to my page.)**

Just then, Natsu heard a rustle in the bushes not too far from their cave. He signalled Lucy to be quiet as he grabbed her hand and exited the cave to run in the opposite direction of the rustling. Although they were running at full speed, the noise that seemed to be following them became louder and louder until it suddenly stopped. Natsu felt something strange about the sudden lack of noise but he continued to run.

Just when Natsu thought that they had lost their pursuer, a large figure flashed in front of them which stopped them in their tracks and forced them to jump back in shock. Natsu eyed the silver haired man in front of them cautiously without a single word or noise. Lucy didn't like the feeling that the quietness gave her so she broke the silence and asked in a soft voice, "Who are you? And why are you following us?"

"-yawn- How about this... I will tell you the answers to those questions if your boyfriend over there can beat me in a brawl –yawn-" Challenged the silver haired man.

"H-He's not my boyfriend!" Lucy exclaimed.

"Brawl..?" Natsu smirked handing Lucy's and his bag to Lucy ignoring her protests and got into a fighting stance.

"I'm all fired up!"

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**I'M SO SORRY THIS CHAPTER TOOK SO LONG WAHHH! I really haven't found the time these days to be writing my fanfics because of everything happening around my house and everything ): I really wanted to update sooner too... :l I've also started to play LoL and I'm getting so addicted to it! Please look forward to the next chapter minna and remember to review! Until next time, Ja Ne~!**


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